Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Kingsley Oti. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Kingsley, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

It’s really interesting to talk about how the idea for Gauge came about because it started from something very personal.

A few years ago, I co-founded SEND, a Y combinator backed digital freight forwarding company that connected African businesses to global trade routes. Being in logistics gave me a front-row seat to how fragmented supply chains are but it also exposed me to related industries like energy.

I have a close friend in the diesel supply business and one day, while catching up over drinks, I asked him why he suddenly quit because I had interest of investing in the space. His answer shocked me. He said, “Kingsley, the theft, the inefficiency, the lack of transparency is too much”. Being a very upright person I knew he couldn’t can’t survive cleanly in this space.

He told me how companies would order 10,000 litres of diesel, pay in full, but only receive 8,000 litres. The rest? Lost in corruption, mismanagement, or theft. Businesses were literally bleeding money, and no one could prove it because there was no visibility.

That conversation stayed with me. It reminded me of when my mom used to trade kerosene while I was growing up. She was doing well I guess because at least as a kid I was having to count lots of cash on a daily basis for her which to me was a definition of success until she suddenly stopped, and thinking back, I now realize she probably faced the same issue paying for more than she got, with no way to verify it.

That’s when it clicked. The problem wasn’t just theft, it was blindness, a complete lack of visibility. Businesses simply couldn’t see what was happening with their energy expenses.

So I started exploring how we could create visibility, a system that helps businesses know exactly what they’re paying for and using. We found a few solutions existed, but they were largely manual, analog and disconnected. That’s when we decided to bring IoT and AI into the mix.

We began with diesel monitoring, helping businesses see their tank levels, consumption, and deliveries in real time. But as we spoke to more customers, we realized the problem was much bigger. It wasn’t just diesel; it was energy as a whole: fuel, gas, electricity, and even solar.

So Gauge evolved into an AI-powered energy management system that helps businesses track, manage, and optimize all their energy expenses and consumption from one simple dashboard.

It’s been an interesting journey from diesel theft to complete energy visibility and there’s nothing more fulfilling than seeing early customers save costs, gain control, and tell us, “This has changed how we run our business.” One customer told us “When your system is down for few mins we feel it so much.” That shows the value the system brings and it is exciting. We are not there yet but we are on a good course.

That’s why Gauge exists; to bring visibility, and efficiency into how businesses consume energy.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

For those who may not have come across me before my name is Kingsley Oti, and I’m passionate about solving operational problems that moves Africa forward.

My journey started in the banking sector where I worked for 2 years before the urgent need to change direction and be more purposeful. I resigned and went back to school to study computer science in Msc. During my time in school that’s when my brother and I decided to bring some sanity into the logistics space that was so super fragmented. That’s how I co-founded SEND (YC W20), a Y Combinator–backed digital freight forwarding company that helped African businesses simplify import and export processes across borders. At SEND, we built systems for automation, operating system for supply chain, visibility, and efficiency moving over $100 million in cargo monthly and proving that technology could transform even the most traditional industries. A little throwback and motivation to not give up, we got rejected by Y combinator 5 times before we got accepted on the 6th attempt.

So my experience in the banking and majorly in the logistics space changed how I saw infrastructure and inefficiency both in Africa and the world. That also laid the foundation for what I’m building now in Gauge.

Gauge is an AI-powered energy management system that helps businesses monitor, analyze, and optimize their energy expenses and consumption across diesel, electricity, gas, and solar. Our system gives businesses real-time visibility into consumption, cost, and performance helping them save up to 35% on their energy bills.

The idea for Gauge was born out of a real, frustrating problem. A close friend who ran a diesel supply business told me how theft and inefficiency were crippling honest operators and bleeding businesses dry. It reminded me of my mom’s experience years ago when she stopped her kerosene business abruptly probably for the same reason: lack of visibility.

So, I set out to build a solution that gives businesses control and transparency, the kind that allows them to see exactly what they buy, what they consume, and what they waste. That mission evolved into Gauge: a tool that brings clarity, accountability, and sustainability to energy use in Africa and the world.

What sets us apart isn’t just our technology it’s our understanding of how these businesses operate. We build for simplicity, affordability, and real ROI. Our customers don’t need to be tech-savvy to use Gauge; they just need to care about saving money and running efficiently.

What I’m most proud of is that we are solving an actual problem as well as growing organically without external fund but through paying customers who see immediate value. Every line of code, every dashboard metric, every alert has been shaped by customer feedback, not external pressure.

At the heart of it all, I see Gauge as more than a startup, it’s a mission to help businesses save cost, smarter, and more sustainably. Because when businesses thrive, the economy grows, Africa and the world moves forward.

That’s what wakes me up everyday as well as the grace of God

Does your business have multiple or supplementary revenue streams (like a ATM machine at a barbershop, etc)?

Yes, Gauge has multiple and complementary revenue streams beyond our core SaaS subscription.

Our main revenue comes from the annual and monthly subscriptions businesses pay to access our AI-powered dashboard where they monitor, analyse, and manage their energy expenses and usage.

The second stream comes from our hardware sensors, a one-time purchase that enables remote visibility and real-time data collection from energy sources.

We also earn transaction-based revenue when customers use Gauge to pay for electricity tokens, diesel, gas, or CNG directly on the platform similar to a payment convenience model.

And looking ahead, we are building capabilities around carbon tracking and credit generation. This will help businesses monitor their emissions and convert their sustainability efforts into measurable carbon credits. This will not only create a new impact-driven revenue line for Gauge but also empower our users to participate in Africa’s and the world’s growing carbon economy.

So, while our foundation is subscription-based, we’re creating an ecosystem where hardware, payments, data, and carbon credits work together driving growth, sustainability, and long-term value.

How’d you meet your business partner?

The story of how I met Sharon Nweke( F), my co-founder at Gauge, is one of those moments that feels both ordinary and divine at the same time.

We first crossed paths through a mutual friend who was in the energy space. We went on to meet again during my time at SEND, the logistics startup I co-founded. Sharon was working in the energy and maritime procurement space, and our paths naturally overlapped through business networks and mutual friends who were in the ecosystem. At that time, I was deeply involved in logistics and operations, while she was handling complex procurement deals for energy clients two very different but surprisingly connected worlds.

Our conversations usually revolved around how fragmented supply chains and energy systems were. She had firsthand experience with the inefficiencies, leakages, and lack of transparency in diesel and gas operations the same problems I also noticed when a close friend complained about theft and losses in his energy business.

Over time, our conversations became more intentional not just about the problems, but about what a real solution could look like if we infused technology. Sharon brings deep operational insight into the energy supply chain, and I have experience building scalable tech-driven systems from my SEND background. It just clicked.

What started as idea-sharing sessions turned into brainstorming meetings, then prototypes, and eventually, Gauge was born alongside Emmanuel Ihuoma (our mutual friend) who later left to go fully into waste recycling.

I will say what makes our partnership work is that we complement each other perfectly. I handle product, strategy, and operations, while Sharon brings her on-the-ground experience in energy management, procurement, and customer engagement. Together, we are building a product that truly understands both the tech side and the real-world energy challenges African and global businesses face daily.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.gaugesolution.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ohteakings?igsh=MW0yNmhmc3p1MWFiOQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kingsley-oti/
• Twitter: https://x.com/ohteakings?s=21&t=MUtQDHRsj28F0FN1YcJ6zQ